The Foundling
by whitewave16
Summary: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, YingFa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry which is as good as a curse in LiCheng. S
1. The Vision from the Jade God

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical manuscripts of Clow?

Disclaimer: CCS is not mine. It belongs to CLAMP.

Chapter 1. The Vision from the Jade God

It caused a big stir in the otherwise serene atmosphere of the Jade Temple. Mistress Cixi revealed that has been receiving "revelations" from the Jade God, or so she claimed. She has never received any visions before and she was not particularly "gifted" in that area but since everyone in the Jade Temple was afraid of her, they just kept their silence.

The imperious Mistress of the Temple was to go on a pilgrimage to the seaside town of Beiba where she was "directed" to go by her visions. Pilgrimages are supposed to be simple and even austere religious trips but Mistress Cixi was never one to hide her praises. She had made sure everyone who mattered in Li-Cheng knew about her "revelations" so a fairly large crowd of people saw her off and ask her to include them in her prayers during her pilgrimage.

Mistress Cixi simply basked in the attention for she believed she deserved every ounce of it. She very slowly and very dramatically ascended into her waiting carriage, sweeping her long and elaborate train behind her. All the adulation reminded her of the time when as a young maiden, she had aspired to become the Li Queen.

The Li King would usually choose his bride from the ladies who were educated in the Jade Temple and Cixi had been very bitterly disappointed when the then Li Prince barely even looked at her. He had chosen the Lady Yelan for his bride. Yelan, from the Wong clan came from the richest and most powerful clan after the Li's and what's more, it was a love match. Cixi's clan the Madoushi's were nothing compared to the Wong's.

There were rumors that the disappointed Cixi tried to place a curse on the Li King and on Yelan but it never worked—the Li's after all were also powerful magicians. Cixi pondered that if she were the Li Queen, she would get much, much more attention than this. It was only through shrewd maneuvering that she was able to secure the post of Mistress of the Jade Temple.

The Li clan has ruled the Southern part of the Celestial Empire since time immemorial. They were near relatives of the Emperor (though detractors often called them the "Bastard Line" or the "Pretenders"). There seemed to be an unspoken agreement between the Li clan and the Emperor – for neither intruded in each other's territory. Except for occasional petty wars, there was peace and prosperity under the rule of the Li's.

The pilgrimage formed a long caravan (mostly the Mistress Cixi's luggage). Her attendants formed only a small portion. They all made their way to Beiba without event. Beiba was a seaside city that the Li's also ruled. It was a rich port that had a sweeping harbor. The poets called it the "Fragrant Harbor".

The party reached the seaside Temple in the afternoon of the next day. The servants unloaded the voluminous baggage. The Mistress was expected to stay for at least two weeks in Beiba. The sky was eerily downcast—a storm was brewing, the waves of the sea were slowly increasing in size and in height. It was like a portent that something was about to happen. They had barely settled in the temple when it had started to rain.

Mistress Cixi proceeded directly to the Inner Temple, where a statue of the Jade god was kept and spent a few hours meditating in front of it. She went into a trance and wrote down her "revelations" on a piece of parchment. It said:

"The ruler of the treasure will rise from the sea. The hero yonder would need a hero now."

She came to herself and read what she wrote. It was the same that she had been receiving for 4 weeks now. She wondered what it meant—her arrogant disposition had weakened her ability to interpret signs. The rain was now pouring in torrents and the temple grounds were drenched.

"Oh great Jade god, hear me, please give me a sign—what should I do?" Cixi muttered dramatically for the benefit of her attendants who were kneeling behind her. Thunder rolled and the lightning boomed from outside.

The inclement weather seemed to disappear at dawn—like there was never a storm in the first place. The sea was calm and quiet, the birds were chirping and the grounds were only partially wet so Mistress Cixi decided to take a walk in the beach near the Temple. She was attended by ladies led by the Lady Ziyi. She said she wanted to meditate, but she really believed that the disappearance of the inclement weather was due to her prayers.

This was their routine for nearly two weeks – walk by the sea then meditate in the temple. So far nothing had happened. The Mistress Cixi was starting to get impatient. She thought of all the ridicule she would get if she returned to Li-Cheng empty handed.

On their last day in Beiba, they took their customary walk near the sea. The Mistress was in the foulest of moods and was snapping at everyone. They were about to turn back when they saw a heap on the sand—it looked like a body, but they were not sure if it was dead or alive. Mistress Cixi turned away. "Uggghh….what is that…let us return to the temple."

Lady Ziyi ignored the mistress and rushed forward and saw that the heap was moving—and it was not a body—but bodies. It was a very weak woman clutching an infant in her arms. The woman had many wounds and was bleeding all over. There was a large bruise on her temple.

"…I beg you…save my child….please….please…." The woman was saying. Blood came out of her nose. She held out a jade pendant with a gold key. "Take this…."

Ziyi took the item and hid it in her robes. Mistress Cixi was too busy showing her disgust at the sight to notice. Ziyi nodded to reassure the woman and took the sleeping infant from the woman's arms. Without a second thought she instructed the servants to carry the woman to the temple. The Mistress was too stunned to react.

The servants did as they were told. They had summoned an apothecary to look at the woman but were told that she was beyond saving. Lady Ziyi and the apothecary stood near the sleeping woman's bed. The woman opened her tear-filled eyes. "I beg you, please…my child...we escaped...ship was wrecked….had to leave my husband and son…beg you…save her." It seemed as if the woman wanted to use her dying breath to tell them this.

The woman then lost consciousness and died a few minutes later. Lady Ziyi looked at the infant…who was indeed a girl. The infant was sleeping peacefully, oblivious to the adults looking at her.

The Mistress Cixi entered the room with a handkerchief drenched with perfume. There was a look of revulsion on her face that made her wrinkles all the more obvious despite the very thick white powder she had on her face. "I came all the way here for this?" She spat arrogantly. By "this" she meant the sleeping infant girl wrapped in the soiled robes of her deceased mother. "Leave that…that thing….I have no use for 'it'…"

Lady Ziyi, who was carrying the infant, moved forward. She had been very troubled by how the Mistress described the child. "My Mistress, please have mercy on the child—we cannot just leave her here…" Ziyi's gentle heart did not enable her to say 'to the wild animals.'

"That thing is a foundling…she is as good as dead—no connections, no dowry…even if she grows to maidenhood, no suitor would ever press a claim for her…she has no money, no means to earn a living. Unless she…she sells herself…like a….a…" Mistress Cixi could not bring herself to say "prostitute"—she looked down on the "vagrants" and considered them no better than vermin. She even had the prostitutes severely scolded when they did so little as set foot in the Temple grounds. For Cixi, any prayers that prostitutes **would ever think** of saying would never reach the ears of the Jade god so they were just wasting their time.

Lady Ziyi kneeled. "Please be merciful, mistress." Ziyi added the last thought desperately.

"You are the one who's being cruel Ziyi. You know that the infant would have no future. If she will not marry honorably, then she will not have children honorably. Having no children is a curse."

Lady Ziyi winced at the harsh words. All her children had been stillborn. But still she had borne children, in their culture it was the foremost duty of a woman second to pleasing her husband. "Mistress, she can work at the temple without pay—we could use an extra hand. I'm sure the Li's would be able to take her in as a servant girl if it gets too crowded in the Temple." Ziyi felt that she was losing the argument so she had to use the words that the Mistress responded to: money, usefulness and praise.

Mistress Cixi considered for a moment. "Very well, I will permit it—but if that foundling would ever cause trouble in the temple, I will throw her to the streets where she belongs."

"Yes, Mistress. I will raise her myself." Ziyi bowed and knelt lower.

"See that you do well in that." Cixi imperiously swept off the room. "I will take a bath, that woman smelt."

Ziyi uttered a silent prayer in her heart –thanking the Jade god. She was not able to save the poor mother, but at least the infant was safe. She believed that the Jade god was merciful and very far from how Cixi portrayed him. She was startled when she heard somebody cooing. She looked at the tiny infant she was holding. The baby was looking at her with innocently eyes, as if congratulating her for her efforts.

"Ah…you're awake my pretty…." The kind lady smiled down at the baby. The infant smiled and laughed and reached out to her face with a round, pudgy hand. "Oh my little pink angel—I will protect you from the Mistress. Hmmm…but what shall I call you, hmm?"

The infant's eyes were a lovely deep jade color and she was wearing the pink robes that her deceased mother had wrapped her in. There were delicate cherry blossoms embroidered on the cloth. Ziyi had an inspiration. "I'll call you Ying-fa, huh, little sweetie?"

Little Ying Fa laughed again, which Ziyi would like to think is the infant's way of saying yes to her question.

The foundling grew into a healthy and lovely maiden under the kind eyes of the Lady Ziyi.


	2. The Battle in the Pagoda

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical manuscripts of Clow?

General notes: I really appreciate the reviews. Sorry for the late update, I had to cram for my Christmas shopping.

Disclaimer: CCS belongs to CLAMP.

Chapter 2. The Battle in the Pagoda

A few days after Mistress of the Temple left for Beiba, the Li King ordered his guards to open the Clow Pagoda. It was located in the extensive grounds of the Jade Temple. Its great doors were only opened in times of great rejoicing, or in times of great crisis. There was a sinister magical force that was hovering above the Li lands—it came stealthily from the sea, almost avoiding detection. Its virulence and its power was great.

The Li King had strong allies from across the sea -- in Nihon -- and the Li elders have tried several times to magically communicate with them but have failed to do so. They all had a very bad feeling that something tragic had happened which was why they needed to go to the Pagoda and try to use the inert but strong magic that was present there to fight the mysterious force which was threatening to engulf their realm.

His attendants had just finished dressing the King in his fighting robes and armor when his wife entered. He then dismissed the attendants to have a private word with her. As soon as the servants left, she immediately held her husband tight. "My husband, can you not let the Elders handle this? I'm sure they're very capable." She knew how selfish she sounded but she had a bad feeling about what her husband was about to do.

The King chuckled lightly. "My dear, I can't breathe." He pretended that he was choking.

Yelan loosened her hold, but only slightly. "If only we could use the magic that is just sitting unused in the pagoda."

"That is why we are fortunate that it is a Moon night tonight when we can use the most magic that's why you don't have to worry too much my love. And in the future I am certain that Xiao Lang will be able to unlock the magic there when the time comes."

"In the meantime can you just let the Elders do the task and wait for them to give you a report or..." She knew her husband did not do things that way, but she was very worried about him.

"Now, now, my dear you know I would always do what is right and defend my people. It is my duty and my pleasure. I promise you that I'll be very careful." He squeezed her shoulders reassuringly.

"There are times when I just wish that you were an ordinary peasant so you wouldn't have to do this." Yelan said, tears falling from her eyes.

There was a glimmer of mischief in the King's eyes. He pretended to sound hurt. "Oh? I don't think you would still love me if I'm just a peasant."

Yelan looked up at her husband's face and saw him struggling not to smile. She lightly punched his armored chest. "How can you do that at a time like this?"

The King chuckled. He was fortunate to find such a wife and to have many fine children with her. He had his own ill feelings about what he was going to do but he did not want to see his wife worry. "I don't want to see you sad, my wife, not ever. It makes me feel that I'm not doing my duty to make you happy like I promised to."

She didn't answer and continued to cry. He gave her a lingering kiss. For his sake, she will try to appear brave. She sighed as her husband lovingly wiped away her tears. It was very hard to resist his charm. "Let's go to the children, they would want to see you before you leave."

They walked hand in hand to the Sun pavilion in the garden where their five children were playing. How they doted on them! Even if he was just past three years old, Xiao Lang was more intelligent than his years and did not let his older, bigger sisters get the best of him. Xiao Lang was presently relating something to his sisters.

"Last night I saw a baby in a crib that was crying so hard. I went to the baby and held its hand then it stopped crying and laughed at me." His sisters then asked with a giggle. He hated it when they did that because it was usually at his expense.

"But you were sleeping Xiao Lang, how did that happen?" Fuutie fought the urge to pinch his cute cheeks.

"It was a dream, Fuutie. You're not the only one who has magic dreams." He replied. He knew she was only teasing him.

"But you're still too young to have dreams even if you are father's heir," Xuehua said.

"I am too! I am 3 ½! I'll be four soon and then I'll be like father and be bigger than all of you!" He frowned, his first infantile attempts at a glare. But it just served to multiply his "cuteness" as his sisters put it.

"Awww Xiao Xiao, don't frown, no girl will like you if you frown a lot. You look so much cuter when you are smiling." Feimei said.

"I don't care. All girls ever do are cry and giggle anyway." He shrugged.

"Oh, but someday you will care if a girl likes you or not, little brother." Huanglian waved a finger at him.

Their parents had lovingly listened to the lively exchange. The children noticed their presence and immediately bowed before the King and Queen.

"I'll be going to the Pagoda children, I'll return as soon as I can. Please behave like you always do my young ladies and try not to annoy your brother too much while I'm gone."

"Yes father." They giggled, which made their brother groan inwardly. His daughters crowded around the King and he kissed their foreheads in blessing. He received the embroidered charms they gave him for good luck. Then he turned to his son.

"Xiao Lang, please take care our five flowers here while I'm gone, alright?"

Xiao Lang nodded, some of his hair falling over his eyes as he did so. "Yes I will, father."

"Do you still remember what I taught you yesterday?" Xi asked him smiling.

"A king is always the first to charge in battle and the last one to leave in retreat." Xiao Lang said breathlessly. Some of the words were still a mouthful for him.

The king ruffled his son's hair and hugged him. They walked to the front gate together to see the king off.

Yelan and her children watched the King as he mounted his horse. He was surrounded by the Li Royal guards led by Wei. They were both magicians and soldiers and looked magnificent in full armor. Xi waved goodbye to his family and led his magnificent cavalry out of the enormous palace gate.

Yelan turned to her five children. "Come children; let us offer prayers for the success of your father and his men." The children went to the Palace prayer room ahead of their mother.

Yelan placed her hand on her heart. "Xi, please come back safe."

FLASHBACK – 3 years ago

The streets of Li-Cheng were again abuzz with festive activity. The King had sent felicitous invitations to his subjects from the different parts of the Li lands for a grand banquet. His beloved wife had given birth to their youngest child and only son 2 months before and he will now recognize him formally as his rightful heir. The King looked dashing in his green Li ceremonial robes as he sat on his large horse. He warmly acknowledged the salutations of the crowd.

The Li clan Elders and their retinue rode ahead to the Jade Temple. The royal family would proceed more slowly for the benefit of the people, who reverently loved their King. Following the King and the Prince was a large open carriage where sat the lovely Queen Yelan who was holding a proudly-wrapped bundle in green silk—their son and heir Xiao Lang. Her four lovely daughters surrounded them and they were all holding dainty fans embroidered with green peonies traced in gold thread. The Li Family's crest is a large green peony traced with gold and this was proudly displayed on the doors of the houses and shop windows and the city gates. The crowd enthusiastically waved and applauded and scattered peony petals on their path.

The "investiture" ceremony was usually held in the Clow Pagoda, which is located in the grounds of the Jade Temple. It was the legacy of the mysterious ancient magician Clow and within resides his well-preserved manuscripts. The pagoda's walls were simply decorated with 52 strange colorless tablets with strange carvings on the surface. A couple of enormous stone statues—one with a sun sign and the other with a moon sign, stood on either side of the ceremonial platform. All these objects were supposedly created using magic by Clow. Nobody has ever deciphered what they meant but legend has it that it was supposed to contain very powerful magic.

For many generations it has been part of the Li family tradition for the King to thank the Jade God for giving him an Heir in front of the strange tablets and attempt to unlock their power. When the Heir was old enough to walk, he would perform the ceremony yearly until he becomes the King. Then the next Heir would perform the ceremony. Throughout the ages, the tradition had become largely symbolic because nobody had ever been able to unlock it—not even the current King who is a powerful magician himself.

The Elders were already assembled inside the Pagoda when the royal family entered. Yelan and her daughters stood around the platform with heads bowed while the King took his infant son from his wife's fragrant arms and carried him in front of the tablets. The King knelt and prayed. When he had finished, the King stood up and walked in front of the assembled crowd of elders and kin. "I, Xi, King of the Li Lands, hereby recognize my son Xiao Lang as the rightful heir of my earthly domains upon my passing. May the Jade God watch over him and may he do his duty well." He then raised his hands in blessing and light came from it and magically formed the Li Crest seemingly on its own volition. It floated near the head of his sleeping infant son and disappeared. The boy then woke up and gave a lusty cry.

The King smiled proudly at his crying son. Yelan climbed the platform and took her son from her husband. The Elders then formed a line to pay homage to their King's heir. And then it happened. All those present felt a rush of wind nobody where the wind came from as it was calm outside. The wind was not too strong and it eventually stopped. But the wonders were not over yet. For a very brief moment, there was a glimmer of light that illuminated the tablets of Clow. The formerly colorless carvings on their surface seemed to come alive, then the light slowly faded and seemed to return to their slumber like it never happened. The Elders then knelt in front of the Heir. The oldest of them then said: "This has never happened before. It must be a sign from the Jade God."

The King and Queen exchanged glances and then looked at their infant son's now-calm face, he was sucking his thumb. This event seemed to confirm what they both felt that their son would be the Chosen One to unlock the magic of the great Clow.

END OF FLASHBACK

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Inside the pagoda, a furious battle raged. The earth shook and the magical aura was heavy and overpowering. A number of the Elders had fallen including some of the elite Royal guards. The dark force, whatever or whoever it was was fighting them from a great distance and has been significantly weakened. It was still putting up an intense physical fight though and they still could not pinpoint it.

The Li King made a drastic decision to draw it out and fight it himself. He knew he was the only one capable of doing so. He prayed silently and pointed his sword with much effort towards Clow's magical tablets to try and draw out more power. They needed to see where the "funnel" was that the dark force was using to release its virulent vapors to them.

A very faint light—almost undistinguishable--illuminated the carvings inside the pagoda then a small black, swirling hole appeared towards the right side of them. "There! Put all your strength there!" The Li King barked. He was feeling the rapid decrease of his magic as he struggled to contain the dark magic and not let it escape. Blood was flowing from his deep magically-inflicted wounds.

A guttural voice hissed from the hole. "How dare you challenge me! I will destroy your lands as I have done to Nihon!"

The remaining elders and royal guards focused all their magic towards the dark force and they felt that it was weakening.

The guttural voice seemed to choke. It sounded very weak when it spat: "Clow's power does not respond to you bastard king!"

The King mustered up his remaining strength though he knew that it would kill him and projected a beam of magic into the hole.

The guttural voice gave an agonized scream—like a hundred wolves dying at the same time. The hole was starting to weaken and fade. The end of this battle is at hand.

"I will find the Chosen One after I kill you Li!" One last surge of magical power came from the swirling hole and hit the weak and injured Li King squarely on the chest, shattering his sturdy armor into dust. At the same time, the hole faded and vanished. It was vanquished at least for now.

Wei, who was also wounded and bloody, ran to the fallen King. "Your Majesty." Wei had been through several fierce battles but this time, his voice broke. The Li King was struggling to speak.

"Train…train…xiao..." And he breathed his last and expired.

Wei slumped like a child to the ground as he reverently closed the eyes of his dead King.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

The sudden and violent death of the Li King was greatly mourned by his subjects. They had built several shrines in his honor and revered him sometimes to the point of folly. The Elders who remained, and there were very few of them, recognized the Queen Yelan as the regent for her young son. Yelan spoke very little when she was told of his death and of her regency. She stood like a statue and held herself upright as a queen should—she did not want to disappoint Xi. Her grief was beyond tears but it was not less deep. She very bravely met with the Elder council for the first time to arrange for her husband's funeral. In private she knew that she had her entire life to grieve for him.

It was right after the Li King was mournfully buried when Mistress Cixi and her entourage quietly returned to Li-Cheng. The Mistress had decided to stay in Beiba until after the funeral. Everyone was too distraught to pay them any attention and for once she did not mind. At least she was spared the embarrassment of returning empty-handed after her visions.

Lady Ziyi murmured a prayer for the King as she held the sleeping infant Ying-Fa closer to her chest. They have all entered the living quarters of the Jade Temple occupants and proceeded to their own chambers with a heavy heart.

TO BE CONTINUED…

I promise happier scenes in the next chapters—including the first meeting of Xiao Lang and Ying-fa. Thanks for bearing with me.


	3. The Mountain Pool

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical manuscripts of Clow?

Disclaimer: CCS belongs to CLAMP.

General Notes: My first S&S scene here was inspired by one of my favorite scenes in a story written by Miss Siela. Thanks for the reviews Miss Siela! And for those who are still with me, hope you'll like this chappie. Presenting the first "meeting" between S&S!

Chapter 3. The Mountain Pool

Sixteen years later…

For a change, Ying-Fa woke up early that day. Her excitement was evident in her jade-green eyes as she dressed. Lady Ziyi smiled fondly when she saw the lovely sixteen-year old girl enter her private breakfast chamber, where she and Ying-Fa had their breakfast.

She bowed to the elder lady, her foster mother, before sitting down on the floor to join her. "Good morning, Lady Ziyi."

The lady inclined her head slightly to the young girl. "You're early today, Ying-Fa." Lady Ziyi's face then turned serious and she said with a twinkle in her eye. "I was told by Nana Bai that you are **not** to join the laundry maids today."

Ying-Fa's eyes turned into green saucers. "**No**! Lady Ziyi, I want to go, please tell Nana Bai that I didn't do anything unladylike for the past…week?" And then Ying-Fa noticed the twinkle in her foster mother's eye.

Lady Ziyi tried to hide her smile by biting her lip. She gave up and chuckled. "And tell me, what is so special about doing the laundry? Other girls would rather die than do it."

"I love going to the Mountains." The young girl's eyes sparkled. "There's something special about it. And the air is so clean and fresh, there's this mountain pool that's so nice and cool and surrounded by Ying-fa trees."

Lady Ziyi fondly listened to her foster daughter's soft and musical voice over breakfast. She has often thought that the child had paid her back many, many times over for saving her life by her natural cheerfulness and kindness. She is sure that her real parents must have been like that. That was why she preferred Ying-Fa to call her 'Lady Ziyi' instead of Mother out of respect to her real but deceased parents.

After breakfast, Ying-Fa almost skipped to the laundry wagon but restrained herself because Nana Bai might think she was being "unladylike" again. Nana Bai was also a temple "foundling" like her and she might even do most of Nana Bai's chores someday. She smiled silently all throughout the 2-hour wagon ride to Shenxi Mountains.

Ying-Fa's specialty was to pick peonies because they used the petals to perfume the laundry. She was very adept at doing, finding the flowers even in the most unlikely and hard-to-reach places. Nana Bai always said that she always thought that Ying-Fa was half a boy because she was certainly more "active" than other girls her age. Her face and skin had a healthy glow and her body is well-toned because of all her chores in the Temple.

They reached the running mountain spring and set out the sheets on the flat, round stones where the water seemed to flush out the dirt. The maids and Ying Fa would scrub the more stubborn dirt which was not much since the sheets were mainly used for the Temple services. Then they laid the sheets out in another field of flat dry stones where the mountain breeze and the mild sunlight dried the cloth. Peony petals would then be scattered all over the sheets to perfume them.

This is Ying-Fa's favorite part when doing the laundry. She would eat lunch together with the others then they would usually take a nap while waiting for the laundry to dry, except her. Nana Bai would sleep the longest so she would have plenty of time to pick more peonies and take a bath in her "secret" pool.

She rushed to the Ying-fa grove as soon as she picked the peonies and undressed beside the pool. She usually never undressed when she bathed at the Temple—because the young ladies bathed together and they have teased her haughtily that she had the body of a prostitute. Many of the young ladies in the temple were studying "fine" magic fit for upper-class ladies (they were mostly from the noble families) and they looked down on her because she was just a foundling and she had no magic. She did not know that they were just envious of her figure which was womanly even at 16. She washed her hair with crushed fragrant herbs and used the same on her body.

She sighed contentedly as she swam around the cool pool. It had flat gray rocks underneath that had no moss. There were petals of Ying-Fa blown by the wind from the surrounding trees. For some reason, she stumbled onto this place about two years before and had come back every time she did the laundry. She felt protected and peaceful there, as if the place welcomed her.

She dressed slowly and gathered a few Ying-fa blossoms and placed them in her basket already filled with cream-colored peonies. She walked leisurely to where the others were and saw that most of them were still asleep. She put down her basket and stretched contentedly. Her robe felt a bit loose now compared to earlier. She discreetly checked the cloth that supported her chest (AN: Women in Li-cheng would use an additional piece of under-cloth to "support" their breasts and help it keep its shape.). There was only one! She usually used two sheets because her chest was "heavier" compared to other girls her age.

She ran back to the pool. Some distance before she reached the pool she heard the strange sound of someone or something splashing in the water. She walked more quietly and hid herself behind some bushes to see what it was. Her cheeks colored when she saw.

It was a young man, washing himself with a piece of cloth in **her** "secret" pool. He had smooth skin and his upper body was…well…she'd never seen a male body before so she didn't know how to describe it even to herself. She could only see his upper body. She felt her cheeks heat up though. She knew she shouldn't be looking but she couldn't help herself. He had thick brown hair that lay wet and limp swept away from his face—the shade of his hair was unusual, like when the mild morning sun hits the bark of a tree—that kind of brown.

She thinks that he was only a few years older than her. She almost gasped when he started to swim and saw his bare buttocks. She had to find her chest cloth quickly or the boy might find out that there's someone else using the pool! She tore her eyes away from the naked boy and scanned the area around the pool. This was hard because she could still hear his movement in the water. If it was possible, she blushed even harder, remembering when she was also naked in the same pool a few hours ago.

She saw it! It was near where she was crouched. She inched herself towards it but the boy suddenly emerged from the pool. He was apparently finished with his bath, so he stood unclothed and dripping wet almost in front of her (she was hiding behind some tall bushes). His eyes were the same color as his hair and he looked very handsome!

He was wiping himself with another large piece of brown cloth. He saw **her **chest cloth lying on the ground. He wrapped himself in his brown cloth and picked up her cloth. He felt the texture of the fabric and looked very curious and puzzled. He didn't know what it was. He smelled it—at least it smelled good, like petals. Apparently someone else was using 'his secret pool', he thought, getting more puzzled.

He was told by Wei that only those with strong magic could enter this Ying-Fa grove that was why he was never worried about being surprised by enemies while bathing here.

He smelled the cloth again, longer this time. It really smelt good. He decided to keep it and placed it in a pocket inside his brown robes. From where she was crouched, all color drained from Ying-Fa's face. She inched away from him and when she thought it was safe, ran like fury to where Nana Bai and the others were.

Ying-Fa saw the disapproving look that Nana Bai threw her way when the old lady saw her running towards them. They had started to get ready to leave. Her peony basket was already in the cart. She bowed low to Nana Bai: "I'm sorry Nana Bai, I thought I saw more peonies in a grove back there. Forgive me."

Nana Bai just grunted. They left for Li-Cheng immediately which greatly relieved Ying-Fa.

Lady Ziyi sensed that something happened back in the mountains—not necessarily bad—but it seemed to have affected her young foster child very much. She chose not to say anything yet since Ying-Fa always told her what was troubling her when she was ready.

Ying-Fa in the meantime, secretly went for an evening walk to the Clow Pagoda to sort her thoughts. She used to be scared of the large pagoda when she first saw it so she avoided going there as much as she can. She prayed hard to the Jade God that the young man or boy won't find her and report what she's been doing to the Mistress Cixi. It would get her and Lady Ziyi in big trouble. She barely saw the Temple Mistress—who largely ignored her—but she felt very lucky that the Mistress never noticed her.

She absent-mindedly held the large metal rings that hang from the back doors of the Clow Pagoda. She didn't notice the rings give off a warm, golden light up as she held onto them, busy as she was thinking of the mysterious young man in the mountain pool. 'He was very handsome.' She had a small smile on her lips and her cheeks colored. She then shook her head. 'But Lady Ziyi said I could never marry, unless I have a dowry.' she reminded herself silently. 'I wish I have a dowry.' She sighed.

She was surprised when she almost fell inside the Pagoda. The doors were not locked after all. She entered more out of curiosity. When she was small, she told Lady Ziyi that she heard voices coming from the Pagoda so she was scared of going in there.

She heard a gust of wind from within the empty, tomb-like Pagoda. She was told that the previous Li King had died here during a magical battle. This only scared her more. She got up and ran very quickly to the door and closed it. She hurried back to her room in Lady Ziyi's living quarters.

Lady Ziyi was meditating quietly inside her room. For some reason, she felt that something was going to happen. She always knew that Ying-Fa was a special child but she had not exhibited any signs of magic at all. She recalled an event that had happened long before.

_FLASHBACK:_

_Ten year-old Ying-Fa ran with a frightened look on her face to Lady Ziyi. She hugged the Lady's knees. _

"_There's someone talking in there!" Her small forefinger pointed to the Clow Pagoda._

_Lady Ziyi looked at her kindly. "But there's no one in there Ying-Fa—it's locked." _

"_There is Lady! They are calling for Mistress!" Ying-Fa had tears in her eyes now. _

"_You heard them say Mistress Cixi's name?" Ziyi chose to humor the little girl. She was able to get from Ying-Fa in between broken sobs what the "voices" said: "Come our Mistress" "need you" "waiting for you" "so long". _

_That night, Ying-Fa had a high fever; the child was delirious. She kept repeating the "voices" she heard earlier. Her strength seemed to have left her. Ziyi thought that she would die. She turned her tear-stained face to the Clow Temple in the distance and saw a great light coming from within. She was shocked and speechless. When she finally was able to move her mouth, the light disappeared. She shook her head and returned to the bedside of Ying-Fa. Color seemed to have returned to her cheeks, and her temperature was had almost gone back to normal. But Ying-Fa slept like a log for 5 straight days afterwards. She had always been sleepy and late in rising since then._

_END OF FLASHBACK_

TO BE CONTINUED…

Thanks for bearing with me guys!


	4. The Wolf and the Sakura

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical manuscripts of Clow?

Disclaimer: CCS belongs to CLAMP.

General Notes: Thanks to all who reviewed, placed my story in their alerts and favorites lists. I really appreciate it! I guess this fanfic has more readers than "Technology is Magic." (Shameless plug :P) If you have time, please tell me what you think about that too. Pretty please!!!

I'm on vacation so I'm posting the next chapter again so early!

Chapter 4. The Wolf and the Sakura

The Jade Temple is also a renowned school for noble and upper-class ladies in learning "fine magic". That is magic they can use when they marry and become mistresses of their husbands' households. Its usually very useful stuff like lighting "little" fires to heat their husband's tea (very fancy and curly tongues of fire are preferred); embroidery, changing the color and texture of cloth, healing minor cuts, etc. There are not-so-useful stuff too like how to sweeten the tone of your singing voice; make little glow lights for guests, perfume the air with their fans, float a few feet above the air (for dances and songs), make young people sleep (for a short time only), etc. All these things are taught at the Jade Temple. Poor young ladies are taught by their mothers at home.

For young men of all social standing, the magic they learn is usually more for use in battle or protection or for crafts. Soldiers in Li-Cheng are usually those with strong battle magic. They are taught by the Li Elders.

Some very exceptional magicians, like the Li Elders have more advanced magic that cannot be taught but are rather "given" by the Jade God and can only be used after years and years of practice. Most Li Elders fall under this category. Some say the Li Queen Yelan has very strong magic, stronger than her son's.

All youngsters are expected to demonstrate signs of magic by the time they are twelve years old. There are only very rare cases where the child manifests magic earlier than twelve. The young Li King is that one exception. He began to practice magic at 10.

Ying-Fa hates "magic classes" the most. She can't do **any **of the magical things taught in the Temple. The teachers all pity her since she has not exhibited any signs of being magical even at 16, so she is placed with the children's class (about 7-9 years old). She assists the magic teachers in the classes where the children all like her. Sometimes she is also called to assist in the magic classes of young ladies of her age, but she mostly just watches them, prepare their robes or hold the lantern for their "Brides' Dance". The Brides' Dance is done in front of prospective suitors and of course, the most desired suitor/husband would be the current Li King, young Xiao Lang.

There had been about three annual Brides' Dances so far and he had not yet chosen a bride, so rehearsals are very intense this year. Ying-Fa watched with much sadness as her fellow young ladies practiced—they all had dowries for their husbands. She felt that she might be destined not to marry and she felt doubly bad especially after seeing that handsome young man in the Mountains just a few days ago. She could not explain why she felt that way though.

She was so deep in thought that she did not notice Lady Ziyi's hand on her shoulder. Her foster mother had to playfully shake her shoulder. "I'm sorry Lady Ziyi." Ying-Fa said, turning away so the Lady cannot see her eyes bright with unshed tears.

"Come, let's go to the marketplace and distribute the fruit." Lady Ziyi's own heart is crushed whenever her foster daughter had to endure the daily magic classes. She does all she can to assuage her suffering and wishes that there was something else that she could do.

"All right." Ying-Fa obediently followed the older lady. Her cheerfulness returned. They were to distribute fruits from the tress in the Jade Temple's extensive grounds to the poor in the marketplace. It was supposed to be the duty of the Temple Mistress as a symbol of her humility, but Mistress Cixi always seemed to "fall ill" whenever she had to do it.

The cart was loaded with baskets of berries and apples. The poor of Li-Cheng waited for the day excitedly because they greatly admired the "kind lady from the Temple" and her "lovely young assistant".

They reached the busy marketplace in a short time, the brown-robed children were already there holding wildflowers that they gave to Lady Ziyi and Ying-Fa. Their parents stood behind them.

"Ying-Fa! Ying-Fa!!" They greeted in welcome. Ying-Fa excitedly jumped off the cart and hugged her little friends. "We missed you Ying-Fa! Do you love us?"

"Yes! I love you!" Ying-Fa giggled, lovingly pinching each of their round, glowing cheeks.

"Can you live here with us and be our Queen?" The children asked.

"Hush little ones, there is only one Queen—and that is the Li Queen." She playfully scolded the youngsters.

Lady Ziyi smiled at them happily. They started to distribute the fruits. The fruits from the Jade Temple used to be bitter or overly sour, that was why it was usually given to the poor by Mistress Cixi. Ying-Fa felt very sorry for the kids who had to eat the bitter fruit, she was still about eight years old then. She prayed and cried hard to the Jade God to make it sweeter. Then the Jade God answered her prayers. The fruits were then so sweet afterwards. Lady Ziyi decided to keep it a secret from Mistress Cixi, lest she have them "sell" the fruits to the poor instead of just give it to them for free. It puzzled Lady Ziyi greatly when Ying-Fa told her of it since it has never happened before.

They had almost finished giving the fruits when Ying-Fa noticed that a young boy of about 10 crying in a corner. She approached him quietly. "Little one, why are you crying? Are you hurt?"

The boy shook his head and wiped his tears on his brown robe. "My grandfather has not arrived with our farm produce yet. He usually gets here on time on our old horse. So we cannot sell it in the market."

"Hush, don't cry, I'm sure he'll arrive soon. We'll help you sell the produce, all right?" Ying-Fa smiled at him and gave him a large red apple, which he took shyly. The boy cheered up when he ate the apple and joined the other children in listening to Ying-Fa's story:

"_There was once a mighty emperor who lived in a great palace. He was rich and had many servants. But he was not happy. His wife had died giving birth to their son, who was a hunchback. The emperor loved his son but the son hated his father and blamed him for his deformity. So the son grew up and became evil and left the palace of his father. _

_The lonely emperor went hunting in the woods one day and he heard beautiful singing from a grove. He followed the voice and saw a very beautiful woman with long, dark hair. They fell in love with each other. _

(The girl children swooned, while the boy children pretended to be disgusted—they really loved to watch Ying-Fa tell the story because she was very pretty.)

_The Emperor married the lady and they had a son. He was very handsome—with brown hair and brown eyes. He had strong magic and became a very powerful warrior. His parents were very proud of him and the Emperor even gave him the Green Robes—which were only used by the Crown Prince. _

_But then the older Prince went back. He hated his new stepmother and stepbrother but he could not harm them because he was afraid of the Emperor. One night when the Emperor went on a journey, the Evil Prince placed a curse on his brother. The brother turned into a wolf every time there was a moon in the sky, his mother's powers could not cure it. _

_They were told that only Sakura blossoms can cure the handsome prince but Sakura trees only comes from the magical island of Fusang, which was very far away_. (AN: Fusang is a mythical island often interpreted as Japan)_. So the mother of the handsome prince used all her powers to magically transport her son to Fusang, but by doing this she died. _

_The handsome prince suffered greatly when he went to Fusang. The people feared him because of his curse. The prince of Fusang wanted to kill him. Now the prince of Fusang was not evil, he was just very protective of what is his and he felt that the handsome prince/wolf will take away something precious from him. _

_Meanwhile, the handsome prince/wolf hid in a magic grove of Sakura every night of the Moon and he never turned into a wolf whenever he was there. _

_The prince of Fusang followed him and almost caught him there so he had to run away. When he went back all sorts of magical protection was around the Sakura grove. The handsome prince/wolf had to use his magic and fighting powers to get pass them. And he did! _

_At the end, he saw his favorite Sakura tree turn into a lovely maiden with green eyes. She was also cursed to remain in the form of a Sakura tree and only a prince from a faraway land can cure her after fighting obstacles for her. The Prince of Fusang is her brother and he allowed them to get married but they stayed for about 2 years with him before he let them go back. _

_The Emperor was very pleased when they returned. He was about to punish his eldest, disfigured son but the younger son begged him for mercy. So the Emperor split his Empire into two – North and South. The North he gave to his older son, the South to his beloved younger son. When the Emperor died, his body was buried in the lands of his younger son. _

_The younger son and his wife ruled their people well and his older brother had agreed to respect his land's boundaries out of gratitude for his help. _

The listeners all clapped when Ying-Fa had finished the tale, which made her blush. "Lady Ziyi can tell it so much better." She said.

Suddenly the little boy who was crying earlier jumped for joy. He pointed to the city gates. "Our cart! Our cart it's here!!" Ying-Fa and the others looked at where the boy was pointing. The nearly-full produce cart was being pulled by two men—a mature-looking man with gray hair and a young man with brown hair and wearing brown robes. Ying-Fa looked closely at the young man and gasped. He was the young man she saw bathing in the mountain pool! She didn't know what to do!

"Um. Lady Ziyi? Can we go now?"

"Let us stay a little while longer, child. The Mistress Cixi is not expecting us until much later."

Ying-fa tried very hard not to look or sound nervous. She stood still as the cart went closer and closer to where they were standing. The cart pulled by the two men reached them presently. The poor boy's grandfather very happily thanked the two men who pulled his cart for him. "May the Mighty Jade God bless you sirs. If my horse did not run away from me on the way to the city, I would have been here much earlier. My lazy horse would probably be back home by now."

"My companion and I are glad to be of help." The gray-haired man with a beard said kindly. He was well-built and looked like a warrior. "But we must go now." The brown-haired young man stood quietly beside him.

"But wait, sirs, may we offer you some cold water?" Lady Ziyi graciously offered. (She can use her magic to turn water cold or warm.)

The gray-haired man bowed his head and smiled. "Why yes, that would be most welcome," he saw her green robes, "thank you Lady of the Jade Temple."

"Ying-Fa, if you please." Lady Ziyi said.

Ying-Fa's face colored. She bowed her head quite low as she served cold water to the two men. She served the gray-haired man first, who bowed to her. She could not help herself and looked at the young man's face. He was even more handsome up close and he was looking very intently at her. "Here, sir." Their hands brushed as she handed him a cup filled with cold water. She held back a gasp. The young man bowed to her, with shy smile on his lips.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the bastard foundling prancing about with a common laborer". A haughty voice was heard. It was Lady Mei Yee and her daughter Lady Mei Ling who were sitting inside their carriage. Mei Ling looked embarrassed for her mother's rude behavior.

"It is not good to look down on others, Lady Mei Yee." Ziyi said, her eyes flashing.

"Who are you to speak—you don't have any children, cursed woman. Don't ever talk back to me, especially since my daughter will be the next Li Queen." Lady Mei Yee laughed as their carriage sped away.

The gray-haired man and the young man looked annoyed with the arrogant lady. They bowed again to Lady Ziyi and Ying-Fa and left quietly.

The people helped Lady Ziyi and Ying-Fa into their fruit cart and they drove off to the Jade Temple soon after. The children sadly said goodbye to Ying-Fa and she hugged them.

On the way home, the young lady looked at her foster mother sideways. She hated it when people reminded her of the fact that she did not have any children.

"I'm all right, my dear." Lady Ziyi said.

Ying-Fa smiled comfortingly at her. They had to stop their cart when they saw a town crier climb his post. "People of Li-Cheng, Her Majesty the Li Queen would like all of us to warmly welcome her guests from Nihon, led by Lady Sonomi. They will arrive at the palace tomorrow morning."

Lady Ziyi looked happily at Ying-Fa. "You can finally see the Li Royal Palace! Whenever there are guests all Temple attendants are required to go to the Palace and welcome them."

Ying-Fa smiled back. She was silent for the rest of the way home, trying hard not to think of the handsome young man she saw for the second time today. She did not even get to know his name. He and the gray-haired man were wearing brown robes, so that means that they are laborers or peasants. She did not mind one bit. She had never thought of herself highly since she is only a foundling and had no magic. She hoped the handsome young man wouldn't mind if he found out. She wished she would see him again soon.

**Color "coding" of clothes in Li-Cheng:**

Li royal family - white robes with **wide gold and green border** at the hem (because people usually have their heads bowed when they speak with them)

Nobles – gray robes with thin gold border at the hem

Soldiers – red robes over gray tunics

Mages/Teachers- blue robes

Temple Servants – green robes

Merchants – yellow border

Commoners/Laborers – brown robes


	5. Peonies and Clay Jars

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical manuscripts of Clow?

Disclaimer: CCS belongs to CLAMP.

General Notes: Thanks again to those who added this story to their Alerts/Favorites and for all the encouraging reviews. Your observations are noted. Yes, Miss Siela, the "legend" that Ying-Fa told the children will play a part in the story later. I'm inserting clues in every chapter hinting to the climax.

Chapter 5. Peonies and Clay Jars

The brown-haired young man was deep in thought as he walked with his gray-haired mentor. He clutched the fragrant cloth that was in his pocket, the one he found a few days ago near the mountain pool. He was very curious to find the owner and strongly felt that it would be a lady who must be a powerful sorceress. He really wanted to meet her! His face colored—to think that he shared a pool with a woman! He hoped the lady of the pool would be just about his age. Only married couples shared bathing water for it was considered highly "intimate". In fact, part of the ceremony that a newly-wed couple must do before the consummation of their marriage consisted of bathing together.

He intends to ask his mother later on how to do a tracking spell. He secretly hoped that it would be the young Temple Lady he met earlier although he could not sense any magical aura from her. For some reason however, he felt strongly drawn to her. Her name Ying-Fa suited her. He felt torn between the lady of the pool and the lady of the temple.

They have walked some distance from the marketplace where they met the green-clad Temple Ladies. He stopped abruptly. "Wei, you can go ahead of me, I have to do something."

The aged general bowed politely. "Yes of course." He walked on, not failing to notice the flushed face of his young monarch.

The young man ran back to the marketplace hoping to find the fruit cart from the temple. Some of the children saw him and told him that "she" had left some time ago. He ran in the direction of the temple but he had to stop because of the thick crowd around the town crier who was announcing the arrival of his mother's guests from Nihon.

At last he found his quarry. Thankfully, the horse pulling the temple cart was a bit slow. "Lady." He called out. "Ying-Fa." He ran faster towards them.

Ying-Fa and Lady Ziyi stopped the cart and turned around looking for the owner of the voice. Ying-Fa's green eyes widened. To think that she was thinking of him just now! The Jade God has heard her prayers again.

The young man stopped in front of them and bowed as he tried to catch his breath. "Pardon my intrusion, ladies, but I have to give you this." He pulled out a plump and fragrant pink peony from the traveler's pouch slung on his shoulder and gave it to Ying-Fa, who was too stunned to take it. She just looked back at him.

"I'm sorry but this is all I can give you." The young man apparently thought that she did not like his gift.

Lady Ziyi smiled and discreetly nudged her young charge to "wake her up".

"Thank you, sir. May I know your name?" Ying-Fa replied, blushing furiously.

"I'm a mere laborer for Li-Cheng." He said looking apologetic and bowed again to the two ladies. "I have to go now. My Mistress might be looking for me." For the second time that day, he disappeared from their sight.

Now, Lady Ziyi knew that Ying-Fa would most likely not receive any marriage offers given her lack of a dowry, so she never encouraged her young charge in such matters, but now she could not help but feel hopeful for the young lady. Even if the young man was only a laborer (he was wearing brown robes), she felt that they would be happy together. She stole a glance at the still-blushing girl beside her and smiled.

The young "laborer" in the meanwhile ran rather happily towards his destination thinking that it was good that he forgot to give her a flower the first time because at least he got to see her again. He would usually pick the rare pink peonies as a gift for his mother whenever he went down from the mountains from his training. They can only be found in the highest and steepest parts of the Shenxi. He was sure that his mother would not notice that there was a missing blossom from her usual bouquet of two dozen.

At last he reached a secret, magically-concealed side gate that led to the Royal Palace. He immediately entered his chambers and took a bath. He didn't want to face his queenly mother looking ragged. He dressed in his royal white robes with the wide gold and green border in the hem. He entered the nearly-empty throne room where only General Wei, the Queen and another young man were waiting for him. He walked towards Yelan's throne with his bouquets of peonies and knelt before her.

"Xiao Lang my son, please rise." Yelan spoke. "The General tells me that you have made steady progress in your training. I am glad."

"Yes, thank you mother." He rose and presented her with the flowers.

"What's this, will I doing "The Dowager's Kiss" soon?" Yelan asked her son with a smile.

The Dowager's Kiss is a tradition in the Li Royal Family where the mother of the King will "kiss" the bride of the King as a sign of "welcoming" her to the family. It started a few centuries ago when the Li King of the time was plagued by the incessant magical battles between his mother and his wives in the palace (Li Kings used to have more than one wife). All women were magically powerful so the damage was great. He devised a spell to ensure "good relations" between the women of his life. He tricked his mother into kissing his wives on their cheek so his spell took effect and all of them were on friendly terms afterwards. Li Kings only took one wife since then. One was more than enough! And to avoid any further damage caused by the magical battles, mother-in-laws kissed their daughter-in-laws even before the wedding. It had become a tradition since then.

Xiao Lang's face colored. He did not expect his mother to notice that there was a missing peony from her bouquet. "Mother. I…it probably…possibly I think…" He was really bad at lying.

"Fell into the hands of a pretty lady?" The other young man who had been silent all this time finally spoke. His voice was full of mischief.

Xiao Lang glared at the other young man. He also glanced at Wei, who probably told the Queen.

"Wei did not say anything. I'm a woman Xiao Lang, I notice little things. I'm sure she was very happy with what you did. I felt like crying for joy when your father gave me a flower for the first time." The Queen smiled. "When you are ready, please introduce me to this young lady."

Xiao Lang stuttered. "I…I better get back to training."

The queen nodded. "Very well. But I expect you to be on hand to welcome our guests from Nihon tomorrow."

Xiao Lang bowed abruptly and retreated to his room.

The other young man in the room smiled like a tiger that just swallowed a plump human.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

It was still early evening but the dancing ground of the Jade Temple is very brightly lit. All the noble ladies and the Temple Dance teachers were STILL rehearsing feverishly for the Brides' Dance. They had gotten word that the Li Queen will be welcoming guests from Nihon so it was certain that the young (and some say handsome) Li King would make one of his rare appearances on that occasion. It would be a great honor if one of them were chosen.

Very few people saw the Li King up close. He was always in training or traveling. Naturally, every woman wanted him to pick them to be his bride. All noble young maidens who aspired to be Li Queen prepared two gowns—one for the "Dowager's Kiss" and another for the actual wedding ceremony.

Ying-Fa was watching all of the dancing passively. Her task was to ensure that all the torches stayed lit that night. For once, she did not feel envious at all that one of the ladies dancing in front of her may be the next Li Queen. She was never part of the Brides' Dance since she had no dowry. She could not help but smile secretly whenever she recalled what happened earlier that day. She was now certain that not even the Li King himself would be as good-looking as the laborer who ran halfway across Li-Cheng just to give her a peony. She pinned the flower to her belt, and her long sleeves partially hid it.

Seeing that she had nothing more to do, one of the older Temple Ladies asked her to bring magical balm to Nana Bai's chamber who is suffering from painful joints. She happily took the big jar and made her way there. She had to pass the dark and scary (at least to her) Clow pagoda but she was too happy to be scared right now. She easily reached her destination where she was asked by Nana Bai to empty the jar on her own container. Ying-Fa complied, feeling sorry for the older woman. Afterwards, she left carrying the now-empty jar with her.

She was nearing the dancing grounds when she saw what appeared to be a tall man hiding and watching the dancers from behind the shadows. He had his back facing her so he didn't see her. It looked like he was looking for someone among the dancers. She gasped which he heard and he turned to face her. She got so scared so she did the first thing that came to her mind: "Crash!" she hit him on the side of his head with her clay jar. She saw that the clay jar was only slightly cracked.

"That hurt! Why did you do that for?" The voice was that of a young man, who sounded slightly familiar.

She ran away from him afraid of what he might do to her. She had not gone far when she tripped and fell down. She tried to rise when she felt a hand grasping her forearm.

She panicked. "Let go of me! I'll scream!"

"Please don't—nobody should see me. I mean no harm, you just surprised me. I'm sorry." He said apologetically.

She stood up and looked at the peony tied to her waist. It was crushed, the petals were scattered around her feet. She slapped his hand away and tried to stop herself from crying in front of him. She gathered up the petals and turned away from him. "It's ruined." Tears were flowing on her cheeks now.

"I'm sorry…" He recognized the flower he gave her earlier and had to smile in spite of himself.

She wiped away her tears and felt that somehow he did not sound as sorry as he claimed. "Just leave me!"

"I'll leave but not after I give you this." He said taking something from his pouch. She didn't look up. He sounded a bit too happy. There was also something familiar about his voice. Then she remembered. It was the handsome laborer. "It's you!" She looked up and saw him holding three peonies for her. It was good that it was dark or he would have seen how red she was.

"Please not too loud. I can't be seen." He said to her, his eyes pleading. He has such beautiful brown eyes.

"All right." Ying-Fa said, suddenly feeling very shy. She looked at the ground.

"Ying-Fa? Is that you? Are you back?" It was one of the Temple Ladies. "Can you come here, you need to do something." It was dark where Ying-Fa and the young man were standing so they were not seen together.

"Hide." She told him and left to do her chore.

"Just light that torch there then you can retire or you can watch if you like." The lady said distractedly. The dance rehearsal was not going well. Many of the young ladies were too clumsy and kept falling to the ground when they should be "floating". Ying-Fa quickly lit the torch, discreetly looking around for any sign of the young man. There was none. She blushed when she remembered that she hit him even if he came to bring her more flowers. She saw someone waving from her from a well-hidden branch of a tall tree nearby. It was him. The spot was secluded. She approached the tree and he jumped soundlessly on his feet beside her. "We can watch from up there."

"I can't climb trees."

"Then float." He said simply, floating towards the branch he vacated earlier.

"I…I can't…" She said, unable to tell him that she doesn't have magic to enable her to "float."

"Why? Are you too heavy?" He was already sitting on his branch. He thought that she just didn't want to join him.

"I'm not too heavy!" She started to stomp away, her hands balled into fists. She felt the urge to look for the jar and hit him again with it.

"Wait, sorry. Here." He motioned his hands towards her and she started to float. She felt very awkward and a bit scared. He met her midway, held her hands and guided her to towards the branch. "There, that wasn't so hard. And you're **not heavy** after all." He had her sit near the trunk and he glided to the spot beside her, still holding her hands.

She breathed deeply and looked at the ground. They were on a high branch. She tightened her hold on his hands which made him chuckle.

She felt her face heat up. "Why are you here anyway?"

"I came to pay my respects to my deceased father. He died in the pagoda." His face was serious.

Ying-Fa nodded, her expression mellowed. "I see." Most of the people who died in the Clow Pagoda were Li elders or soldiers but it was not uncommon for families in Li-Cheng to have members with different "vocations"—for example, a Li elder can have children who are laborers, soldiers, mages, and so on.

"And I was looking for someone." The shyness in his tone was evident. He was looking at her intently.

"Oh." Ying-Fa said, feeling shy too. She averted her eyes from him and gazed at the dance rehearsal below them. He released her hands.

"I hope that that person I'm looking for will accept this, even if she hit me with a jar." He took the three peonies from his pouch and held them in front of her again.

She giggled as she smelt the flowers. "Thank you, again. I'm really sorry for hitting you. I thought you were a thief or something." She then frowned. "We should tend to your bruise."

"No, I heal pretty fast."

"Can I at least know your name? After all, I already hit you with a jar." She asked with a glint of mischief in her eyes.

"It's Xiao Lang."

"Xiao Lang…sounds….it sounds…" She was thinking about where she heard that name.

"Look, a falling star." He said pointing to the sky. "Let's make a wish."

She looked to where he was pointing and was distracted. She closed her eyes and made a silent wish. "Wait, won't you get in trouble with your mistress for coming here?"

"I have spoken with her. She gave me permission."

They eyes locked again. She could tell that he was blushing deeply—that made two of them.

"Ying-Fa?" It was Lady Ziyi calling from a distance.

"I have to go now, that's Lady Ziyi." He had them float slowly together down the tree. "When will you come back?"

"I'll try to return tomorrow evening." He said, reluctantly letting go of her hands. She hid the flowers inside her loose sleeves.

"See you then." She said, her eyes bright and happy.

"See you Ying-Fa." He replied and watched her approach Lady Ziyi with a big smile on his face.

TO BE CONTINUED

---------------------------

Hi Guys,

Whew, this is my longest chapter ever for this story. Sorry if this update is "delayed". I was not satisfied with the previous versions I wrote and I wanted to inject more romance to it so I had to work extra hard because I'm romantically-challenged….

The idea behind the "Dowager's Kiss" came from the first CCS movie when Yelan kisses Sakura on the cheek before she leaves the Li mansion. Just thought I'd write a background story or explanation for that.

If you have time, please read my other fanfic "Technology is Magic". Wav yu!


	6. Allies from Nihon

The Foundling: AU – In the golden years of the Celestial Empire, 16-year old Ying-Fa is a humble foundling raised in the Jade Temple. She is the object of pity and derision because of her lack of magic and her lack of a dowry--which is as good as a curse in the ancient city of Li-Cheng. Will she find answers in the magical tablets of Clow?

Disclaimer: CCS belongs to CLAMP.

General Notes: **So sorry for the late update.** I was swamped with work after the holidays. Thanks again to those who added this story to their Alerts/Favorites and for all the encouraging reviews sorry I wasn't able to reply to all but I did read all of them!

We start on the same night where we left off.

Chapter 6. The Allies from Nihon

Xiao Lang was meditating in the garden, sitting in a lotus position. The fragrant cloth he found near the mountain pool is floating in front of him. He was using tracing magic on it. He could sense a very faint but distinct magical aura from it but it seems that the spell is not working. He felt the same aura in and around the Jade Temple—it was quite strong there--but he could not trace it to a specific person. His face colored when he remembered Ying Fa—her innocent eyes and pretty face and how she hit him with a clay jar. He thinks that she is very pretty and he is drawn to her—but he also felt drawn to the owner of the cloth he found. He is a bit confused. Is it possible to be drawn to two different women? He could not sense any magic from Ying Fa so it meant that the owner could not be her. But knowing this did not diminish his attraction towards her.

He heard the sound of soft clapping as someone approached. "My cousin is now a man, I see, is that a souvenir from a romantic tryst? Personally I prefer loin cloths." a deep voice said from the shadows. It was dark in the garden, save for the cloth, which was illuminated with magic.

Xiao Lang gritted his teeth but did not reply. It was just like his damned cousin to say something indecent every chance he gets.

The other young man, whose name was Eriol, pointed to the floating cloth. "I didn't know that you had a naughty side, but this proves that we are cousins after all." His voice was very mischievous. He was about to summon the cloth towards him but Xiao Lang abruptly grabbed it and shoved it deep inside his pocket.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I would appreciate it if you kept your obscenities to yourself," came Xiao Lang's surly reply. He glared at his cousin.

"I think you just mean that you don't know what that cloth is for." Eriol started to rock with laughter. He sat on the ground, rubbing his stomach. "It's for a lady's chest and judging from the size of that cloth, I'd say you're a very, very lucky naughty…"

Xiao Lang stood up and surprised his cousin with a muting spell. He then walked briskly to his chambers, away from his silently laughing cousin. The young king's entire face, ears and neck were red and his hands were trembling from embarrassment.

Like every other family, royal or no, the Li's had a closely-guarded secret—Eriol Li. He served as the "decoy" Li King.

Certain members of the family had been gifted the special ability to travel long distances using magic. The most recent recipient of this magic was a sister of the previous Li King. This Li princess documented her travels of the "Silk Road" where she met and fell in love with a magician in Rome and from their union came Eriol. Since this was considered an illegitimate marriage, the child was considered a bastard and so was kept within the Palace grounds and tutored privately. He was also very strong in illusion and defense magic.

Since the dark magician who killed the previous Li King threatened to go after his heir as well, Eriol volunteered to become the "decoy" to confuse anyone who tried to harm the King. Xiao Lang was very reluctant to accept the offer because he feels that it is cowardly for him to do so, but Yelan and General Wei persuaded him to agree so that he can focus on his training in the mountains. Eriol would appear in place of the King in the usual daily court ceremonies in front of the Elders (who are not aware of this arrangement.) So far, there had been a number of magical attempts to trace or harm his cousin but Eriol had managed to thwart them. He had after all, inherited memories from the magician Clow Reed but is fated to lose them once his task is finished. No one knows yet what this task is.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Every soul in Li-Cheng was in a festive mood that morning—the day when they will welcome the Queen's guests from Nihon. All of the city's gates and the doors and windows of houses were adorned with yellow peonies, the color of welcome. It has been a long time since guests from Nihon have entered the walled city. Nihon had long been a strong and loyal ally of the Li's but had suffered more than 10 years of continuous war. Fortunately the wars had ended a few years ago.

A welcome dais was prepared outside the main gate. It is where visitors who were not relatives of the Royal Family were traditionally welcomed. The young noble maidens were particularly excited since the handsome and still unmarried Li King will be making an appearance.

The young King and his mother arrived together in a large carriage and waited for the guests to arrive. Eriol accompanied them closely but cast an illusion spell on himself so that the crowd would not see him; only the King and the Dowager could.

The avid crowd offered bouquets of peonies to the Queen in an orderly fashion but all eyes were on the King, who is very handsome. He is wearing white inner robes and a green overcoat with the Li symbol on his chest. On his head was a green, gold-bordered hat that covered his entire head, with only a few stray strands of brown hair visible.

While he warmly acknowledged the greetings of the crowd, Xiao Lang's eyes scanned the crowd for the Temple delegation. He bit his lips to hide a smile when he saw who he was looking for. Ying-Fa was beside her foster mother and appeared to be as excited as everyone else to see the guests from Nihon. She appeared to be busy looking for someone in the crowd too—and he prayed that it was him. Although he admitted to himself that he felt a little relieved that she was not looking in his direction. She might recognize him—that's why he chose to wear a hat today. He continued to discreetly observe her, thinking that her smile must be more dazzling in the morning light. If only he could go nearer. He was fully-occupied with this pleasant observation while appearing to be attentive to the crowd until he was nudged on his side by the "mute" Eriol in red soldier's robes beside him. Apparently the spell that Xiao Lang cast on him last night was too strong—it may take days before he recovers his voice.

Xiao Lang received a telepathic message from him: "We could go look for the owner of that chest cloth right now, cousin, the conventional way. Just say the word and I'll manually inspect the bosoms of these young ladies."

The King pretended to straighten his robes. "Don't you dare do anything you lecher. I know **other s**trong spells." It would look weird if he looked like he was talking to himself since the crowd could not see Eriol.

Eriol merely grinned. "Such brave words from a King, if you want you can take the right and I can take the left?"

The King was about to give a strong reply but Yelan motioned for the two young men to come closer to the edge of the dais. They could now see the banners of the Nihon delegation in the distance from where they were standing.

From another side of the crowd, Lady MeiLing of the Rae clan felt her heart beat faster as she gazed at the Li King. She had seen him on a number of occasions at the royal court prior to this—he was either speaking with the elders or presiding over dinner with the Elders, but for some reason that she could not account for, she strongly feels as if this was the first time she ever saw him since they were children. (It was Eriol she had been seeing before at court, not Xiao Lang, except when they were kids.)

_FLASHBACK:_

_Lady MeiYee strongly pinched the shoulder of her 4-year old daughter. "Now listen to what I'm saying, you stubborn girl." _

_MeiLing winced in pain. She greatly feared her mother. "Yes mother."_

"_You will go crying to the young king and tell him that you lost your bird of fortune." _

_(AN: The Li Queen traditionally gave a "bird of fortune" to all young maidens in the realm once they reach their 4__th__ year, which is considered an unlucky year for young girls, hence the Fortune Bird.)_

"_But you released it mother. It's from the Queen, I might get in trouble."_

"_I know that, stupid child. I just want you two to be friends. __**Pretend **__that you lost it, is that so hard?_

"_No mother. It's not hard."_

_MeiLing did as she was told. She pretended to cry and recited her mother's words to the letter when 4-year old Xiao Lang approached her. He retrieved the bird for her in the wooded area near the palace, but that did not bring them closer. _

_She had never felt at ease with the boy-king especially since he was very distant towards her even if they trained together for about a week for fighting magic. He left to train for the mountains with General Wei very soon after. _

_MeiYee was so disappointed upon hearing this that she whipped her daughter mercilessly using her magic (it left no scars). She is very ambitious and wants her daughter to be the next Queen. MeiLing still shudders at this memory._

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Loud trumpets blared as the guests from Nihon drew close. The carriage stopped in front of the royal dais. The Nihon soldiers who escorted the delegation lined up in a neat row and saluted before the Dowager Queen and the King.

Lady Sonomi emerged from the carriage carrying a large, gold-embroidered cloth bearing the seal of the Empire of Nihon. She was closely followed by her long-haired daughter, Lady Tomoyo.

They bowed low and presented the cloth to the King. "Our Emperor sends his warm regards to Your Majesties and wishes for the good health and prosperity of your kingdom. He has sent his humble servants to present his Seal to you."

"Please rise Lady Sonomi." The King said warmly, taking the cloth from her. "Thank you for visiting our land. Our best regards and prayers are directed as always to your Emperor."

The guests from Nihon rose elegantly from their positions. Yelan gave Sonomi and her daughter a formal hug, such as Li Queens do to female guests. For some reason, Eriol looked a bit flustered as he stood beside the King, especially when Xiao Lang presented the ladies with bouquets of yellow peonies. Lady Sonomi walked in between Yelan and the King towards the royal carriage, followed closely by Tomoyo.

Tomoyo enjoyed the scent of the peonies she is holding. She saw the young man in red-robes with a monocle in his right eye—he was walking a few paces behind her—he seemed to be openly observing her. She smiled at him and he looked so startled. He looked away. Tomoyo shrugged, he was probably just shy.

She turned away from him and saw the warm smiles and friendly faces of the people of Li-Cheng. She smiled and waved back. Her mother did tell her stories about this great walled city when she was growing up and having seen it for herself, she felt fortunate to have come here. "It's nice here." She said to Eriol, who had come closer to her. He could not reply since he was still "mute" thanks to Xiao Lang's spell.

Her eyes were then drawn to the green-clad Ladies to her right. She liked how their robes were styled. She noticed a row of white-haired ladies in front, beckoning to her to approach them in a friendly manner. Mistress Cixi wanted to make a good impression on the guests from Nihon, so she and the other Ladies thought of giving tokens to them.

Sonomi was busy speaking with the King and the Dowager ahead of her so Tomoyo paused, not knowing what to do. She looked at the red-clad young man, wordlessly asking him: 'Should I go to them?' All Eriol could do is nod.

Tomoyo grew more curious about the young man beside her. She approached the Temple Ladies. Mistress Cixi inclined her head and gave her a crescent-shaped pendant. She walked on and received various trinkets until she reached the end of the row where Lady Ziyi stood. Tomoyo's attention was drawn to the green-eyed girl standing beside the Lady. Ziyi gave her a roll of green silk.

"This is lovely. I'll make a dress or two from this." Tomoyo said when she accepted. She smiled warmly at the Lady and the girl. In a few minutes, her arms were laden with welcome gifts, even the children offered her a peony or two and she accepted them all.

The King, the Dowager and Lady Sonomi were already seated inside the carriage when Tomoyo reached it.

"Thank you very much, kind sir." Tomoyo whispered stealthily because she suspected that the young man was under a spell of some sort. She looked directly at him and felt her face color. He was easy on the eyes, tall, dark-haired, his eyes were as blue as the sky. She smiled shyly at him and inclined her head. He did the same and assisted her as she climbed the carriage. Eriol waved blankly at her as she took her seat beside her mother.

Xiao Lang discreetly looked back at his now-befuddled cousin, standing on the street with his mouth slightly open. "So somebody was able to get past your concealing spell huh?"

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Ying-Fa felt disappointed as she walked with the Temple delegation towards the Li Palace. She had been looking around discreetly, searching for Xiao Lang in the crowd. A group of men clad in brown were walking just in front of them but she could not find him. 'Maybe his mistress did not permit him to go.' She thought. She had taken extra care with her appearance today.

She tried to cheer herself up by counting her blessings: she was going to see the royal palace at last, second she was going to see the young lady from Nihon again, who looked kind. She had no friends among the other young ladies her age.

There was a long line of people at the gates of the Palace, waiting to offer little tokens to the guests. Ying-Fa was fascinated when she first saw the large and intimidating building. 'To be a servant girl in such a place would be so grand, especially if Xiao Lang works there too.' Her face colored when she realized what she was thinking about.

By protocol, the Temple delegation is always the last in line whenever foreign guests arrive so by the time they entered the throne room, the Nihon guests were reclining on large red cushions with a large pile of small gifts were on either side of them.

The Li King was sitting on his throne while the throne beside him is vacant. That is where his wife would sit, when he marries. The Dowager was seated some distance from her son. The 54 Elders were seated in a lower row and they represent each of the 54 different kinds of magic that they believe existed. Ying-Fa looked very fascinated with all that she is seeing. The Li King's face colored when he saw her enter the throne room.

Tomoyo stole a glance towards the Li King's throne. She did not see the dark-haired young man there. But she did see a small fragrant piece of silk with the characters: "My name is Eriol." She had a strong feeling that she was being observed, but she did not feel unnerved about it.

Eriol was seated behind the king's throne, concealed by a gold screen. He had a very good view of Tomoyo from where he was seated. He surmised that she must be gifted in illusion magic as well since she saw him even if he cast a spell on himself since even the Elders could not see him.

When Lady Ziyi approached the guests, the faces of Ying-Fa and Tomoyo brightened up when they saw each other. They finally got the chance to introduce themselves to each other. Tomoyo secretly slipped a small cherry blossom brooch in Ying-Fa's hands. "It's my gift." She whispered. Ying-Fa smiled her thanks, the Li King tried hard not to stare too much at her from where he sat.

Sonomi silently observed the young temple girl. "Your daughter is such a fine young lady." She said to Lady Ziyi.

"Yes, she is a fine girl but I am but her foster mother, Lady Sonomi." Ziyi replied.

Sonomi nodded thoughtfully as Ziyi and Ying-fa walked away from them and towards the thrones. Ying-Fa kept her eyes on the floor for it was the custom when meeting the royal family. The King and the Dowager were some distance from them so she would not have seen his face clearly anyway. But for some reason, she tilted her head a little and tried to sneak a peek at his face. Was she imagining it, or was he looking at her? Of all people, why her?

"Hey, weren't you ogling at someone from the temple earlier?" was Eriol's message to his cousin, who concealed his nervousness by acting formally.

"How about you--ogling innocent visitors from Nihon?" Xiao Lang retorted.

Ying-Fa was confused. She felt that she had seen the King's face before but it was impossible since this was her first time in the palace. She hurriedly followed Lady Ziyi to the far side of the large chamber since she was not eligible to join the Brides' Dance.

The young noble maidens had formed a neat row as they prepared to perform the Brides' Dance. It was a way for young men, including the Li King; to meet their future wife since only eligible young women participated in this. It was customarily performed in almost all social gatherings. On the other hand, each of the young noble ladies' goals was to catch the eye of the biggest catch of them all—the Li King.

MeiLing joined the line, praying fervently that he will notice her. Even though she did not attend the Temple classes, was also trained to do this dance.

"Here we go. Brace yourself. I had to endure all of this while you were enjoying yourself in the Mountains." Eriol sighed telepathically.

Xiao Lang did not reply because he saw how bad the dancing was last night while he was watching with Ying-Fa. He knew also why she did not join the Dance. It was his great-grandfather who decreed that only maidens with dowries can do so, which he thinks is very cruel. But since he is king now, maybe things will change. He was thankful that Eriol could not read minds. He had no doubt that the dancing would be worse today since the ladies were all nervous.

The musicians played the opening strain. From the very first steps to the last, MeiLing of the Rae clan showed her exceptional grace and poise. She glanced frequently in the direction of the King, whose eyes seemed to be scanning another part of the room.

Lady MeiYee was watching carefully and followed the direction of his gaze. She frowned when she saw that he was looking at Ziyi with that temple girl. She had a bad feeling that that temple girl is bad news. 'She'd be almost as good as a prostitute, after what I'm planning for her. No one should get in the way of my plans.'

XOXOXOXOXO

After the Welcoming rites, most of the people left the Throne room. The King and the Dowager were speaking with Lady Sonomi in a smaller chamber. Tomoyo had retired for the night.

Sonomi summoned a circle on the large table with her magic. A column of silvery smoke appeared and surrounded the table with a thin, shimmering blanket of light. They then saw a bearded but strong-looking man with white hair who was about 50 years old beside him is a young gray-haired man. They appeared to be related. Xiao Lang recognized the older man as the Emperor of Nihon; he was not sure about the other man.

Sonomi bowed to the old man reverently. "Your Majesty."

The Emperor of Nihon acknowledged her greeting with a stately nod. "Good evening friends from Li-Cheng. Thank you for welcoming my messenger with your usual warm hospitality."

Yelan inclined her head. She spoke warmly to him: "It has been so long since we received word from you, Emperor Amamiya."

"Aye, that is true. I see that Xiao Lang is now fully-grown."

Xiao Lang acknowledged the Emperor in turn. "What is it that we can do for you, Majesty?"

"So business-like, just like your father, eh?" The old man chuckled almost fondly. "Very well, I would like to humbly offer my aid in the fight against the black wizard, the same black wizard that ravished our lands for many years. We have word that he has fled north—to the Celestial Empire. It seems that he has allies there and will surely cause trouble for you. I am willing to send 20,000 troops to help protect your lands."

"Yes, the Elders have sensed as well." Yelan said. "But we suspect that their forces are still not united enough to be a threat."

"The black wizard has almost fully recovered from the wounds he received about 16 years past, when he battled Fujitaka and your husband. He is after something in your lands. We just don't know what it is."

"So he was in Nihon at that time?" Yelan asked.

"Yes, he destroyed several villages in his path and many lives were lost. We spent many years and lost many lives until we finally forced him to leave Nihon."

"What does Your Majesty want in return for his help?" Xiao Lang asked.

Emperor Amamiya's face turned grim. "I want nothing in return but the severed head of the black wizard as my trophy for all the suffering he had caused my family and my people."

Xiao Lang looked thoughtful. "And where are the troops that you speak of?" The Nihon delegation arrived with only a few escort soldiers.

Here the Emperor turned to the young man beside him. "Your Li Majesties, let me introduce to you my nephew and heir, Tsukishiro of the Yukito shogunate."

The handsome younger man courteously nodded to them. He looked like he was about five and twenty years old. "Your Majesties. Lady Sonomi. I have wanted for so long to see Li-Cheng with my own eyes—I've heard many good things about your lands and your people."

The Emperor appeared to be very proud of the young man, "He was very strong force in driving out the Black wizard from our lands. He will lead my forces there if you would agree to my proposition."

Xiao Lang spoke again: "We would need to consult this through a council with the Elders." Yelan looked on silently, very proud of what her son had become.

"I understand I would do as much." The Emperor replied. "Sonomi can send us your decision using her magic."

Tsukishiro spoke, "We wait expectantly for your reply." They said their farewells and the shimmering light on the table disappeared.

Sonomi turned to the Li monarchs. "You can also count my daughter and I to help you in any way that we can."

Yelan and Xiao Lang thanked her for the offer. "Lady Sonomi, you may retire if you desire for tomorrow, I will escort you to the Jade Temple."

"Certainly, Your Majesties." Sonomi bowed and left the room to retire for the night.

Eriol emerged from where he was hidden. He had heard the entire conversation and now had his voice back. "The Nihon emperor must hate the black wizard so much for him to send his heir and nephew here."

"Who doesn't hate him, honestly?" Xiao Lang said thoughtfully. "I've heard that Tsukishiro is an able general."

"I've heard he is haunted by the loss of his fiancée, who was but an infant when the wars in Nihon started." Eriol informed them. "They believe the black wizard killed the child."

"And where did you hear that?" Xiao Lang asked incredulously.

"Here and there…" Eriol replied enigmatically.

XOXOXOXOXO

**Shenfa Mountain, across Shenxi Mountain**

Inside a dark cavern in the upper ridges of Sheena, a cloaked woman lifted her eyelids, revealing her white, unseeing eyes—she had no pupils.

She had just awoken from deep meditation. She stood and held out her hands with a hopeful expression on her face. She softly murmured an incantation. Beads of light converged around her outstretched hands. The light took shape into a gold crescent-shaped bell with a long purple tassel. She felt the floating object with her hands. She looked elated. "Good. At last, she is ready."

The woman reverently wrapped the bell with a cloak and snatched her cane. She started to dress herself for a journey to Li-Cheng.

The woman's lips wore a hopeful smile. "I will be free of my curse soon with your help, Cherry Blossom."

TO BE CONTINUED….

--------------------------

A list of places mentioned in this story:

**Li-Cheng –** the walled city of the Li Royal family. Seat of government

**Shenxi **– the mountain where Temple maids do the laundry and is also where XiaoLang and other noble boys do their training

**Shenfa –** the "enchanted" mountain; inhabited by a reclusive blind prophetess, who pays for goods with ginseng roots that turn into gold once the seller reaches town.

**The Shenxi and Shenfa mountains** – legend has it that the two mountains were once lovers who did not want to part even in death, so they prayed to the Jade God and he granted their request by turning them into mountains.

**Nihon** – present-day Japan; a close ally of Li-Cheng

**Fusang** – ancient, mythical name for Japan in Chinese myth

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Hope this chapter did not give you information overload—lots of new characters and events happening here with clues and foreshadowing.

About your reviews for Chap 5, I thought you were getting bored with all my details and descriptions so I had decided to shorten it a bit—I didn't think that anyone would notice if I take it away.

Thanks for bearing with me, I'm learning more and more about organizing my ideas and writing them with every chapter with the help of your reviews. Please drop a review if you have time. Thanks!


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